Moments in the Snow
by Pet Darkling
Summary: Life in Section Nine just keeps getting harder for Motoko. Between the failed missions and the reaccuring dreams, she running on empty, but when she wakes up in a place thats not hers, will time slow just a little?


_This is a little story told by Motoko, it's about realization and understanding. This is my first Ghost in the Shell fiction. It could fall anywhere in the story line really, but I am basing a lot of it off of the first movie. So if you haven't seen the first movie, you might not get some of the references. __Disclaimer:__ I do not in any which way own any part of Ghost in the Shell. Enjoy. _

Moments in the Snow

It was about mid December and the snow had been falling for days. Life in Section Nine is never easy, but as of late it seems that it just kept getting harder to track people down and bag the right person. It seemed that no matter what Motoko did to try and find the right person she was always off. And to top everything off her dreams were starting to concern her.

It was the same dream over and over again; the day the she final found the Puppet Master and dove into his brain. There she was looking through his eyes, staring at the frozen picture of Bateau while he explained his plan and saying how he wanted them to merge. That day had left her wondering if she was still the person she had always been or if she was some one new.

Slowly Motoko opened her eyes and reached for the curtains that should be at her bed side, but all she grabbed was air. Startle Mokoto's bright eyes shot open to take in her unexpected surroundings. The room was much bigger than her own apartment, and the bed she was lying in was big enough for two. Which begged the questions: where was she and was she alone.

Grabbing the oversized sweeter that was lying on the floor, Motoko slid out of the bed and tip toed to the door she thought would lead out of the room. Opening the door ever so slightly she found that it meet a darkened hall that spread in two directions. Having no weapons and no clue where she was, she decided that her best bet was to go the way that a small bit of light was bleeding from.

Staying as close to the wall as she possibly could she make her way towards the light. The whole time she walked down the hall she had the strange feeling like she had been there before, that she knew where she was going. She felt that even though she couldn't truly see what was in front of her, that nothing was going to come rolling out of a door shooting at her. When she reached the source of the light, she discovered that it was sunlight, bleeding though the curtains on a window. She pulled back the curtains to reveal a picture window half covered in snow which a perfect picture of snow covered trees on a slopping hill.

Turing around to continue walking she started to notice that the walls were covered in pictures. Since the open window added light to the hall Motoko was able to see the pictures clearly. Thinking that maybe they would tell her just where she was, she glanced up at one directly across from the window, but it was nothing but a classic oil painting of a forest. Motoko sighed in disappointment, there went her hope of an answer. Feeling that there was no use in staying disappointed she continued down the hall stopping at every picture frame to find that most we're either empty or another oil painting. That was until she came across one that truly caught her by surprise. It was a photograph of Herself, Bateau, and Ishikawa in South America.

She smiled to herself at the sight of the picture, the people in the picture we're the only ones who had copies. She knew instantly that she was in a safe place. But the question still remained, where was she? _If that picture is here then it has to either be Ishikawa's or Bateau's safe house. _ She reassured herself. The only way to find an answer was to keep walking, she determined. As she passed another window she opened it to add more light to the hall allowing her to see if there were more pictures on the walls. As she figured there were.

When she glanced up at the next photograph mounted in between two more painting, she found that it was one of her and Bateau when Section Nine had just received the tachikoma for the first time. Then she glanced at the photo next to it to see that it was of just Bateau and a tachikoma. This confirmed her suspicion that that it was Bateau's safe house. He was the sentimental type, in her mind. She gave a slight smirk at the thought.

And if her suspicion was completely true that meant that she had been here before and that she was heading towards Bateau's office; the same office that she woke up in after the brain dive with the Puppet Master. Figuring that there was only one way to answer her other question was to continue down the hall. However when she started walking again this time, her steps were much more relaxed and she felt at ease. There was just something about being where she was that put her at ease. That she could feel real in her shell; that she could just be Motoko and she didn't have to be The Major.

Bateau always had that effect on her, no matter what the problem was or how bad a situation got he was always the first one to remind her that in the end it would all makes sense. She was most relaxed on a mission when he had her back and when something went wrong and she was stuck in a pinch he could pull her out. He was her best friend, he knew her best. Sometimes she would even admit to herself that he might even know her ghost better than she did. But that little secret she would never share.

Soon enough she found the last window in the hall, but it was already open. Instead of looking for more pictures she spent some time just looking at the snow. There was just something about Japan in winter that made her want to cry. Snow acted like a blanket that could cover all the imperfections, all the distractions, as if time itself would slow for a snow storm. And for once, she would allow herself to slow down and just focus on one thing. There had been so many cases flooding into Section Nine that she was in over her head. For weeks she had been flip flopping cases and misjudging information that she just couldn't take it any more. She leaned her head against the cold glass trying to stop her mind from spinning.

"No matter how cold it gets it won't freeze your mind," a voice said from behind her.

"I guess you would know, it's a view that time would lie down and stand still for," she answered, turning to see Bateau. "Care to tell me how got here?"

"I could, but that would take the fun from you. Nice sweeter by the way," he answered.

"I figured you would like it," she returned glancing down at it. "Though it's a bit too big for me, would fit you though."

"I guess it would." Bateau moved closer to the window leaning down to look out at the snow. "It's been too long since the entire section just slowed down and took one job at a time. We're cyborgs, not superheroes."

"Tell that to the scum out on the streets and the ones in our government. And then we might have a day for a snow ball fight."

"Now that I would pay to see, you in a snow ball fight," Bateau said with a smirk.

"You don't think I would have fun, or is it that you think I would lose to, oh, you perhaps?" She retorted.

The smile on Bateau's face grew, "You're a full cyborg that likes to free fall and scuba dive, I wouldn't put anything past you. But, I do think I could take you. You need to have a little more fun in your life," he paused for a moment, but it wasn't long enough for Motoko to get her two cents in. "And I don't mean brain diving into an awol cyborg that wants to control the world."

"There is nothing wrong with my hobbies, this coming from the man with a favorite tachikoma," Motoko finished as she pushed herself off of the wall and started toward the end of the hall that met Bateau's office.

She stopped in the door frame, waiting for Bateau to follow her. It was exactly as she had remembered it to be. The desk was covered in stacks of papers and the book cases were full, but it didn't seem cluttered. "It is exactly how I remember."

"Nothing much changes around here, except for a few new pictures here and there."

"So I've noticed. For a full cyborg you have always been strangely sentimental," she added.

"It makes me different, I think its why I fit into the section so well." His response made Motoko think, it was true that everyone in the section had their quarks. That's what made them such a good team, they we're diverse in character. But lately she had become so icy, so stone like. She knew that Bateau probably dragged her here because she needed to stop and think, but all she had been doing was think. Suddenly she herd a voice in her head, _Stop thinking so much. _She knew it was Bateau.

"It's not that simple. I'm The Major; I should have everything under control. I shouldn't have to take a break to make everything make sense, it should by the time I finish reading the report."

Crossing his arms Bateau looked down at her, "You can't be perfect all the time. And you shouldn't feel that you have to live up to that expectation. I know that you're not perfect, that's why I like you. You're not just one of those mindless cyborgs out on the street that just live to please. You have emotions, dreams, aspirations. Wither you feel it or not, you still have a ghost, you still have the memories of a little girl."

Motoko wanted to cry, she wanted the world to stop. She wanted to stop thinking, to stop being herself. She knew everything he was saying was true, but she didn't want it to be. She didn't want to be that little girl that she had once been; she didn't want to be so frail. She had always been independent, she hated the idea of anyone caring for her, and she didn't want to be a burden. "I know you're right, you know you're right, but I still feel that need to save the world. It's what I'm good at."

"The world can wait for you to have a little fun once in a while. You need to just sit back and watch the snow fall. Don't think about the reports, the scum on the street, or even the scum that runs the government," he said placing a hand on her shoulder. "Follow me and I'll get you your clothes. They smelled of alcohol and ash when you showed up last night, I wasn't about to ask questions. But there was nothing on the news about a bar fire last night so you should be in the clear when we get back to the division tomorrow."

"I don't remember last night, and my own clothes would be nice. Not that your Section Nine sweeter isn't comfortable", she said following him back towards the bed room. But she stopped at the open window. "You know since we're not planning on going into work today, would you be up for a snow ball fight?" she asked with a smile.

Bateau simply turned and smirked, "Would that be before or after you've changed?"

"After," she said as she walked passed him, _some things just never change_ she said to herself.

X-end-X

_Author's Note: It's kind of cute for Motoko and Bateau, but she can't be that tough all the time. And everyone needs a best friend so why not Bateau, he's pretty kick ass. Hope you liked it! _


End file.
